Ladders: Software Development – The Final Showcase

It was time for Phil Jeffes to present the work that the Software Development students had produced over the past 8 weeks at the Final Showcase, based at Newcastle City Library. After storytelling regarding their varied opportunities, students Hannah, James and Josh were introduced. With three very different projects, it was remarkable to see how they had managed to make such an encouraging start to their projects.

Hannah designed and programmed an inviting website for a friends company which was ready to simply add content, describing how she used market research on design trends to decide on the theme. She highlighted that her website design was “trial and error, but mostly research in design trends”. It was particularly admirable for Hannah to describe the challenges she faced and acknowledging how this motivated her creative process.

James made a skeletal base for a game called ‘The Dare’, which he described as a choose your own adventure style horror game. Demonstrating the varying elements of the game, he also added that he created a plan of what he intended to include with more time. With aspirations of working in video games, James initially hoped to add to his C.V. with this programme but ended up thoroughly enjoying it while doing so.

Josh then showed his work, an idle game ideal for playing when you need a break from something, demonstrating the different levels and upgrades of the game and how his skills have developed.

The audience were in complete awe of their work and applauded with a sense of pride and respect for these individuals – particularly for Phil, it was overwhelming for him to see his students create something so professional and impressive over a set period of time. Proudness oozed from the room. It was wonderful to witness.

Before the night was over, there was a quick chat from Youth Focus NE, who worked with some of the students from the various courses, as well a few others, to create Ladders Champions. They explained all about the Open Badge Academy, a creative tool to capture learning where you can log your skills and experiences and show what makes you different to other people, something that would be beneficial when applying for jobs in the future.

When all of the talks were completed, our successful students stuck in to celebratory pizza and were given the opportunity to discuss future plans and upcoming opportunities. Our software development students were flooded with compliments and queries on their creative process, proving that their hard work was evident and ended up inspiring others in their own development. Overall a fantastic evening for a fantastic team of software developers – congratulations on your success!